The Third Mental Health Week, organised by the Hospitaller Sisters of Braga, came to an end yesterday with the presentation of the ‘Guide to Mental Health Etiquette’ and the discussion ‘Mental health without silence: a dialogue by everyone and for everyone’. At the session, which took place in the Isidro Alves auditorium at the Catholic University of Braga, speakers and institutions highlighted the crucial importance of mental health, not least because of the ‘tragic human costs,’ not to mention the immense social and economic costs.
The event began with a video showing the overwhelming figures on mental illness, but also with simple and direct warnings and advice on how to take care of one's mental health. First of all, one's own, and then that of others.
One of the invitations/pieces of advice was to disconnect from the world for a while and listen to oneself. ‘Taking care of your mind is a form of self-love.’ As for the appeals, addressed to everyone, they are that no one should remain silent when they feel that something is not right or that their neighbour, friend or family member is not well.
In fact, the general theme of mental health week was ‘Uniting voices for mental health’. This is based on the conviction that ‘there is no health without mental health’.
While the economic and social costs are enormous, especially when we are talking about more than a million people with mental health problems, even more alarming are the human costs, with more than 700,000 suicides worldwide each year as a result of mental health problems. Hence the need to ‘stop, breathe, ask for help and offer your presence’.
The opening session featured speeches by Paula Gomes, managing director of the Hospitaller Sisters of Braga; Júlio Faceira Guedes, president of the Braga delegation of the Portuguese Red Cross; Paulo Dias, pro-rector of the Catholic University of Braga; and Joaquim Freitas, representing Francisco de Assis, on behalf of Carla Sepúlveda, councillor for Education and Social Cohesion at Braga City Council.
Marina Ribeiro, clinical and community psychologist at the Braga Red Cross, presented the ‘Guide to Mental Health Etiquette’. She emphasised that these are simple, easy-to-understand tips that are available to everyone via the internet.
The guide is aimed at everyone, but with a special focus on schools and families, precisely so that the subject is no longer taboo. Among other topics, the guide covers first aid for mental health: 1 - Pay close attention to others and look for details; 2 - Listen to others without rushing, giving them space to speak; 3 - Connect with people and show them the medical and psychological resources available.
